St. Cloud May Allow Septic Tanks To Free Space At City Plant

July 20, 1986|By Veronica T. Jennings of The Sentinel Staff

ST. CLOUD — Faced with dwindling sewage capacity, officials are floating a trial balloon that would allow new single-family homeowners to use septic tanks instead of hooking up to the city's sewage system.

The state Department of Environmental Regulation last week granted the city's request to treat an additional 50,000 gallons a day at the city sewage treatment plant.

At the time of the request, officials said the treatment plant was about 19,000 gallons away from its daily maximum treatment capacity of 900,000 gallons.

Even with the additional flow, the plant is within 67,500 gallons of reaching its state-mandated limit. So, city officials want to apportion the remaining sewage capacity to commercial and residential developers in the fast-growing area.

City officials have said that single-family homes might absorb much of the remaining capacity, which could result in a slowdown of growth, perhaps even a ban on hookups.

If septic tanks are used, the city buys more time to complete its sewage system improvements.

City Manager Jim Chisholm Thursday asked the city council to consider reserving the 67,500 gallons primarily for large commercial and multifamily projects.

No action was taken on the proposal at the workshop. Chisholm said he has not approached county or state officials about the plan.

About three months ago, officials with the DER approved the city's proposal for a $7 million sewage-sprayfield near St. Cloud Manor, after two years of delay for studies and negotiations with the state.

Once the treatment plant is improved and a second plant is built, the city would be able to treat 2 million gallons a day.

''Septic tanks are not short-cuts,'' said Frank Wolf, the county director of environmental health. ''We look at them as semipermanent structures.''

Under state law, property owners must hook up to a publicly-owned sewage treatment system within one year after sewage lines become available to the property, Wolf said.